Huller having flexible hulling tube



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United States Parent HULLER HAVING FLEXIBLE HULLING TUBE Ervine Olney Herman, Momence, ill. Application December 23, 1952, Serial No. 327,520

3 Claims. (Cl. 146-Z99) This invention relates to a new and improved dehulling machine and more particularly to a machine especially adapted for removing ythe hulls from soy beans and the like.

While with some grains, cereals and the like, as for example roasted peanuts, the outer skin, husk or hull is comparatively loose and may be rather easily removed by friction, the hulls of soy beans are not loose and are more diicult to remove. It has heretofore been a general practie to crush soy beans and thereafter to attempt to separate the crushed mass to remove the hulls. Such attempts have not been fully successful and at least some portion of the hull material remains with the crushed kernels.

Preliminary to use of the present apparatus, the soy beans are treated as by soaking or steaming to loosen the hulls as well as to prepare the beans for the market. This preliminary treatment partially removes the sapouin although much of it remains to be removed with the hulls. The apparatus of the present invention then removes the hulls by a rubbing, rolling and kneading action which has proven in practice to split lthe hulls and remove them whole or in large segments.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved machine for removing Ithe hulls from soy beans or the like.

it is a further object to provide a machine which rolls and kneads the beans between two surfaces, said surfaces preferably having different co-eicients of friction under the conditions of use so that there is a rubbing action against a bean hull or outer surface.

It is another object to provide a construction in which a rubbing surface is flexible and will conform to a substantial portion of the surface area of beans being treated.

It is an additional object to provide a construction in which the rubbing and rolling pressure may be controlled as well as the effective area of surface contact with beans being dehulled.

lt is also an object to provide apparatus of this character in which fluid pressure serves to press a exible diaphragm against the beans in the dehulling operation.

lt is a further object to provide apparatus which is simple in design, construction and use and adapted for commercial production and use.

Other and further objects will appear as the description proceeds.

l have shown a preferred embodiment of my invention in the accompanying drawings in which the single gure is an elevation of the apparatus, partly in section to show the interior construction.

The apparatus is generally supported from a standard 11 which is shown as secured to a base 13 located on a table or bench 15. A drive motor 17 is shown as located adjacent the bench and drives the pulley 19 by means of the V-belt 21. The pulley 19 is rotatable on a shaft 23 supported on the drive bracket 25 which, as shown, is clamped to the standard 11 by collar 27. The shaft 23 is shown as adjustably secured in the bracket 25 being 2V held in place by the clamping nut 29. Shaft 23 also carries the small pulley 31 which drivesthe second belt 33.

An upper bracket 35 is `secured to the top of the standard 11 by clamping bolt 37. The left end of bracket 35 supports a pair of idler pulleys 39. The right end of bracket 35 carries a bearing sleeve 41 having a shoulder 43 located against ythe upper face of the bracket 35 and held in place by nut 45 which bears against the underface of the bracket. The shaft 47 has the drive pulley 49 clamped thereto, the shaft extending down through the sleeve 41 with the pulley 49 bearing against the shoulder 43. As shown in the drawings, the second belt 35, driven by pulley 31, passes around the idler pulleys 39 and around drive pulley 49 to transmit power from motor 17 to shaft 47.

Shaft 47 has a central cylindrical opening in its lower portion and the worm shaft or screw conveyor 51 is tted into this opening and held in place therein by the set screw 53. The hopper 55 is supported on the hopper bracket 57 which is secured to standard 11 by means of sleeve 59. An intermediate bracket 61 is secured to the standard 11 between the brackets 27 and 59, and bracket 61 supports a pipe cross member 63 by means of a pipe fitting 65 screwed into the left side of member 63. This pipe fitting 65 has an extension 67 fitting into the extension 69 on bracket 61, the extension 67 being clamped in adjusted position by clamping nut 71.

A tube 73 formed of rubber or other material, such as any of various suitable synthetic compositions, passes downwardly through the pipe cross fitting 63, the tube having its upper portion ared outwardly and around the upper flange of the cross fitting 63 and held in place by clamping ring 75. The lower portion 76 of the tube 73 is also passed around the lower ilange of the cross fitting 63 and is held in place by clamping ring 77. The right side of the cross fitting 63 has a bushing 79 threaded therein which connects by means of nipple 81 to the pressure regulator 83. Air or other lluid under pressure from any suitable source such as an air compressor is led to the pressure regulator S3 to the connection at 85. The pressure of the fluid passing through the regulator 83 is controlled by adjustment of the control handle S7. A bleeder cock S9 is connected to the right side of the pressure regulator by the nipple 81.

The worm shaft 51 carries an integral worm forming a screw conveyor, the upper portion 93 of which is formed to tit adjacent the walls of the hopper 55. The lower portion 95 of the worm is shown as formed with threads or ridges having a uniform radius and pitch and passes downwardly through and beyond fthe tube 73.

Below vthe lower end of the worm shaft 51 i-s shown a receiving and separating trough 97. This trough 97 may be fed with water through a pipe 99 controlled by valve 161. The trough 97 is also shown as provided with a horizontal separating partition 163 located laterally of the lower end of the worm shaft 51 and worm 95.

in the use of the apparatus, the soy beans, after being properly soaked or steamed, are placed in the hopper 55. The motor 17 is placed in operation and serves to rotate the worm shaft 51 so that the upper portion 93 of the .screw conveyor feeds the beans downwardly through tube 73. This feed is continued by the lower portion of the yscrew conveyor 95, In general, the height of the threads or ridges of the conveyor portion 95 may approximate the diameter of the average soy bean being treated. Fluid under pressure is admitted through the pressure regulator $3 and surrounds the flexible -tube 7 3. The pressure applied is sufficient to deform the tube 73, forcing it inwardly until it contacts somewhat rmly the surfaces of soybeans carried between the threads or ridges of the conveyor 95.

The inner surface of tube 73 may be treated or formed to have a knurled or roughened etfect so as to increase the action by that surface againstthe beans. It is desirable that the frictional co-eicientof the surface 73 be greater than that of the surface of shaft 51 and ridges of the lower conveyor portion 95 under 'conditions' of operationsoa-s to give a rubbing and rollingeiect to,V .the beans against i 'the shaft and ridges. The soy beans with Vtheir-hulls split and loosened drop into the water in the 'dischargetrough 97. Thehulls are lighter .than the beans and will come to the surface of the water so .that they pass o Vabove vthe vpartition 103. The hulled soy beans will be carried oi Vby the lower portion of the water flow below the partition 103. The apparatus, therefore, serves to effectively .remove .the .hulls from the beans and to separate Y themfrom the beans after removal;

It willbe understoodthat while :the apparatus has been discussed Vfor use in treatiug'soy beans,'it is adaptable for treating yother Vtypes vof products .or materials from which it is desired to remove hullsfor skins.Y 'The size and proportionsof Vthe shaft and spiral ridges and the length and cross-sectional area of the pressure tube may Vbe modified according to the size and character of the material being treated. The pitch and lspacing .of the turns of the spiral ridges may be varied as well as its radius. It Y mayhave its turn-s sospaced, for example, so that only a single row of soy beans or other material may pass between turns. The height` of the spiral ridge may be substantially less than the average diameter of the material V being treated so as to afford greater contact between the ing arcylindrical shaft with spaced spiral ridges thereon, the height of the ridges being substantially uniform and Various known forms of ap- Y ing a screw conveyor, a portion of lthe conveyor compris 7 on the order .ofthe diameter.of .the beans to be .dehulled whereby a single layer of beans is conveyed, a flexible tube enclosing said portion of the conveyor, and means for applying uid pressure to theeouter side of the tube to force its inner face in contactwith the conveyor and beans carried thereby. Y Y Y 2. Dehulling apparatus for beans or the like comprising a screw conveyor, a portion of the conveyor Vcomprising a-cylindrical shaft with spaced-spiral ridges thereon, the height of the ridges and their spacing VVbeing VonV the order of the diameter of the beans to be dehulled where-Y by a single layer and a single row of beans is conveyed between adjacent ridges, a flexible tube enclosing said portion of the conveyor, and meansffor applying uid pressure to the outer side of the Vtube to force its innerA face in contact with the conveyor and beans carried thereby. Y

3.` Dehulling apparatus ffor beans Vorthe,lilre'crornpris-YV ing a screw conveyor, a por-tion of the-conveyor comprising acylindrical shaft With'spaced spiral lridges thereon, the height of Vthe ridges and their yspacing being on thek order of the diameter of the beans -torbe dehulled where-V by a single layer and la single row of beans is conveyed betweenvadjacent ridges, a exible tube enclosing said portion of the conveyor, and means for applying fluid pressure tothe outer Iside of thetube to force its inner face in contact with the conveyor and beans carried thereby, the

Vinner face of the Ytube having Aa higher co-eicient of friction than the surface of the screw conveyor.

References Cited in the le of thisrpatent UNITED STATES PATENTS 20,971 Henwood et a1. Jury 2o, isss 28,485 Hendricks May 29, 1860 802,777 Nutt Oct. 24, 1905 1,038,339 Gabbett-Fairfax Sept. l0, Y 1,427,000 Lewinski Aug. 22, 10922 Y 2,164,384 Carpentieri July 4, 1939 V2,428,995 Rogers Oct. 14, 1947 Y FOREIGN PATENTS 49,553

Netherlands Nov. l5, 1940 

